Dan Evans wilted in the heat in his first ever main draw match at Roland Garros, after the British No 4 was a set and a break up.

Evans led against veteran Tommy Robredo in the first round of the French Open, but faded badly, losing 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-1.

'I can't feel my chest,' he said to his camp as he went 3-0 down in the third set. The temperature was over 30 degrees for the whole match, and his Spanish opponent looked far more comfortable with the conditions.

Dan Evans wilted in the heat in his first ever main draw match at the French Open

Evans led against veteran Tommy Robredo in the first round - a set and a break up - but faded

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The 27-year-old from Birmingham makes no secret of his dislike of clay. Before this year he had not played a single ATP level tournament on the red dirt. His is an enterprising, all court game that is not suited to a slow surface. ‘It’s almost like a different sport,’ he said in April after Great Britain’s Davis Cup defeat in France.

Despite this, he was impressive for a set and a half. On the backhand side he favours an aggressive slice, but with that shot neutered by the slow, high-bouncing clay he sensibly hit more flat or topspin backhands.

However he threw in a bad game at 4-5 in the second set, missing two forehand volleys as he charged into the net behind his serve, and once he had levelled the score at a set apiece, Robredo took control.

Evans complained 'I can't feel my chest' in the third set as the temperature hit 30 degrees

The 35-year-old, ranked 271 due to missing six months of last season with an elbow injury, is at his best on hard courts but he is comfortable on clay, too, reaching the quarter-finals here in Paris five times.

As the match moved past the two-hour mark, Evans started throwing in more and more drop shots, so desperate was he to avoid long punishing rallies.

A rally at the start of the fourth set typified the two players' conditions. Evans hit a drop shot, 35-year-old Robredo scampered up to it and replied with a drop of his own. Evans never even moved.

Robredo will face Grigor Dimitrov in round two. As for Evans, next up for him is the Aegon Open in Nottingham, where the grass will suit his game much better - and the weather will surely be considerably cooler.

Evans' game is not suited to the clay courts and he will now prepare for Wimbledon on grass